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It was the last day of the WAR (Read: Exams) which we had been fighting for the whole last month…. I and all my classmates were huddled together in the lobby of our dept when they announced the surprise…. I was indeed surprised… my b’day was over and it had been over 15 dayz…., so I was thinking, or should I say EVIL M was thinking “What could it be?”, I raced the horses of my mind but I couldn’t think of anything….

“Maybe they are gonna kick your ass…..” sniggered Evil M with a evil laugh, I shushed him in my mind and asked them.. “What’s the surprise?”…“You will know soon enough…” they said and almost all had an evil grin on their faces, I silently shuddered remembering EVIL M’s comment.

I sat down and while talking to a couple of frenz, got to know that it was a b’day of my classmate ‘O.R’ I wished him and later got to know that just 2 days back was the birthday of another one of my class mate ‘P’.I checked my mobile calendar and saw that there were 4 more b’day’s coming up this month, EVIL M laughed and said “Your pocket money is doomed for this month dude….” I shushed him again, and went to join my frenz in thinking about how are they gonna celebrate the b’day, I handed over the money needed to bring the cake… they turned towards me and said, “No need for the money from you pal”,I was surprised, these guys at the slightest moment when I say ‘let me buy you something’ hound me like a bunch of blood thirsty vultures, and suddenly today they were saying ‘NO NEED FOR YOUR MONEY’I thought “Something is fishy here”.“No Doubt about that, I can feel it, you ass is gonna be kicked baby, wohooo” added EVIL M.“How on earth are those two things linked” I asked“You will know. He he. Soon….” He said and smiled an evil laugh.

Some guys went to bring the cake, and I while talking to my friends announced a secret which I was dying to announce from the last week (Girls need not worry…… I am not engaged ;))I said “I am going to Bangalore to spend a week with my best friend chavan”“But we don’t have any holidays, class starts after 2 days for the next Sem” said Maddy“Yeah I know, but just after exams I am not gonna come to college so soon, damn them if they don’t give holidays… I will take a leave of my own”“What leave…” asked Maddy.“V.L……Voluntary Leave” I said with a smile…

After the cake came, we all gathered together to have a look at it, and when they opened it, it was indeed a surprise, there were 3 names on the cake, ‘O.R’, ’P’, and my own..I looked at them and they said “We dint get to celebrate your b’day… and most of us forgot your b’day so to make up for it, we are gonna celebrate all 3 of your guyz b’day today”EVIL M smiling an evil smile said “Recession can cut short a lot of things, thank god they dint get you a tissue paper with just your name on it”, I sighed and said “You truly are evil…”“Thank you so much for the compliment” came the sharp reply.

Cake was cut by the three of us and I thanked all of them for the celebration, this year’s b’day had turned out to be the most memorable event in my life, I thanked god, and then saw others as they were giving b’day bumps to ‘O.R’ I smiled while they kicked his ass to their hearts content, then they caught hold of ‘P’ and kicked his ass too…looking at them I was laughing so much that I was almost crying, and then I saw them coming towards me. It was too late till I realized what was going to happen nextI asked EVIL M “Are they gonna kick my ass next?”“BINGO” he said and gave the most evil laugh I had ever heard…

I had never got my ass kicked earlier, I had almost never been in a fight my whole life, So I tried to run but paddy and maddy caught hold of me and all the others started kicking, my god, I was lost…..lost in pain, while looking at others I had thought they kick slowly, but these were mean blows that were raining on my ass, after 3 whole minutes they let me go, to kick some random ass again.I slowly got up and wonder of wonders, there was no pain, because I couldn’t feel my ass at all :P

I was walking slowly like had suddenly gained a hundred pounds till I reached canteen and began talking on my Bangalore plan,Maddy said, “You said to me na yaar, you have almost never travelled alone, how are you gonna reach his place?”I said “That was earlier, but now I got no fears, coming to mysore has made me brave”, truth was my friend R.V.D had said so many horror stories about Bangalore, one was where he was robbed in his own home in broad daylight, and another which included his mobile getting stolen more than 5 times, was the reason I was a lil thoughtful for the trip.“So you are a big boy now….” mocked maddy“Sure my mom doesn’t let me grown long hair or act like a punk, but yeah I guess I am a big boy now” I said and all smiled.

I reached chavan’s home with no problems, and chavan welcomed me with open armsLemme explain a lil about him, he works for a Microsoft certified company, works at a night shift and lives with a roommate, and has 24/7 power with unlimited internet with a kitchen looked after by a neighbor.Days were going good, no one to answer to, no one saying ‘wash your socks’, eating when I want, sleeping when I want, internet anytime, “This is life” I said to myself“Indeed” agreed EVIL M

After 3 days chavan suspiciously came towards me and asked me “After you came here you haven’t bathed, have you?”“Lie Lie” screamed EVIL M, but I dared to say the truth, “No I haven’t” I said“My god…... why?... There is hot water any time you want, then why haven’t you” he questionedI coolly sat back in the chair and said “Well I am doing my bit in saving the environment”“Saving the environment… how?” he asked in disbeliefI sighed and replied with my well rehearsed answer “See I bath mostly twice a week, I don’t wanna waste water, because water is a very precious commodity, I don’t regularly bath like you even if I am clean. You know how much water I save by not bathing……..”He looked at me with disbelief in his eyes and roared “Not in my room you dont… go now and take one”“Hmmm only for you my dear chavi… I will take one” I said and went to the bathroom, but as I lathered my hands with soap suddenly they turned all red and began to itch badly.

“See.. see this is what happens if you try to be too good” said EVIL M, “Yeah…I guess” I agreed.“No more being Mr nice guy from now on, stick to your earlier plans about bathing twice a week and you will be just fine” said M. I said “Yes sir” and saluted him, and he gave his signature evil smile, I then searched for another soap and completed the painful human ritual. When I came out, chavan was smiling at me like a proud father :P.

That same night he left for the job and I came online, I then saw the time was 10.30 and went into the neighbors kitchen to get myself dinner, to my shock I saw it was locked, I went back into the room and saw chavan was online I told him about the dinner problem and he said to wait till 11.00 because the aunt who lives next door usually after finishing her work comes back at that time. I waited till 11.15 but no one was there, I said this to chavan, he called me and said, “I am in office, these people won’t let me go anywhere, and at this time of the night there won’t be any shops open too, still I will try to get you something”I smiled and replied “No need Chavi….. Nothing’s gonna happen if I go hungry for one night, don’t worry about it”“Hmmm ok” he said and cut off the phone…It was almost 11.45 when he called me back again and said “Come quickly towards the gate”I dint understand anything but quickly ran towards the gate, he handed me a parcel and said “Bon appetite”I was shocked, shell shocked…. None of my frenz had ever done anything like that for me, I cried… I don’t know why….. but I cried, I went back into the room and opened it to find veg biryani, tears were flowing and I couldn’t stop them, the biryani was spicy as hell, but I was feeling so happy at that point, that it dint matter.

Even if he couldn’t go out of his office, at that time of the night he somehow had got me abiryani, I mostly couldn’t eat it because I was crying silently, I just couldn’t believe my luck, just last month there was so much happiness that had come through my b’day gifts and now this, I dint expect this much, I mean I cannot explain in words how it felt at that moment, it wasn’t just because he brought me food, it was because he cared so much about me that he dint want me to go hungry, even for one time. The moment was so special for me, that till the last second in my life, whenever I will have a sad day, I will remember it, I will cherish it. Alwayz

“You are blessed my friend, take care of him every moment that you be with him” said EVIL M, and that’s what I did till I was there, I talked so much that I shared moments which I have never shared with anybody and I ended up saying about a incident when I was in my 6th standard, when a girl had kicked me in the groin because I had refused to give her my pencil….I remember once when we started talking at 9 in the night which continued to almost 3 in the morning.

I tell you even if I dint do much in the week as I mostly stayed in the room itself, those seven days were beautiful, very very beautiful, for all the memories I made, for all the secrets I shared, I got to know him better, and I got to know more about myself than I knew before… it was a sort of awakening where I got to know, world is a special place and if you meet the right persons, your life can be heaven, you don’t need to die to find one :P.

The last day when I was to leave to mysore, while I was getting down at the bus stop from his bike chavan said “I wish you would stay for another week” and I guess you can know how I felt at that point.

P.S: Jasmine I am so sorry I dint mention about your phone call on my b’day. It was great to hear your voice that day (She lives in Assam), I forgot to mention it sorry, I can always sometimes be a dumbo, and yes you are the best friend in my life and you always will be. Now smile :)

P.P.S: Thank you so much for the care and concern Remya and QM, you know the reason why…. :) Thx once again.

Wow, you really are lucky to have Evil M in your life. Congrats on having such a wonderful experience with friends. One of the best things in life is having great friends, and really knowing how much they care for you, right?